The Davenport Grouphttps://davengis.wordpress.com
Follow your LAMAMon, 14 May 2018 14:43:33 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://s0.wp.com/i/buttonw-com.pngThe Davenport Grouphttps://davengis.wordpress.com
TDG warmly welcomes Dieppehttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2018/04/04/tdg-warmly-welcomes-dieppe/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2018/04/04/tdg-warmly-welcomes-dieppe/#respondWed, 04 Apr 2018 06:28:06 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=218The Davenport Group (TDG) warmly welcomes Dieppe to our Canadian clients. Located in New Brunswick, Dieppe is a francophone city with French as the primary language for nearly 75 percent of its population. Happily, several of TDG’s employees are fluent in French, and Dieppe’s city staff is also fluent in English.

“It’s great to work with a bilingual client,” said Ben Davenport, TDG co-founder and lead software developer. “We’re fortunate that we have a skilled project manager, Tricia Parish, who’s an AICP and also fluent in French. And the city employees of Dieppe are excellent to work with, they’re very accommodating with communicating in English as needed.”

Dieppe is contracting with The Davenport Group for software to support their Permitting, Planning, Licensing, and Code Enforcement functions. “The most important thing with any client is understanding the city processes clearly,” noted Tricia. “Once we had the procedures customized to Dieppe’s specifications, it was just a matter of working together to ensure accurate translation of the user interfaces.”

Dieppe is the largest suburb of the city of Moncton, which hosts a metropolitan area of about 144,000 residents. Dieppe is known for its natural beauty as well as its storied history. In September 2018, Dieppe will host its 20th international kite festival, which draws more than 500,000 attendees from more than 40 countries worldwide.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2018/04/04/tdg-warmly-welcomes-dieppe/feed/0terrapretareviewPhoto courtesy of Pmau via Wikimedia Commons; licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.Bettendorf, IA goes live with LAMAhttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2018/02/27/bettendorf-ia-goes-live-with-lama/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2018/02/27/bettendorf-ia-goes-live-with-lama/#respondTue, 27 Feb 2018 05:12:11 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=212Residents of Bettendorf, IA are now enjoying the many benefits of their city’s selection of The Davenport Group’s LAMA software for their administrative processes. Located on the Mississippi River, Bettendorf is part of the Quad Cities metropolitan area; about 35,000 of the area’s 400,000 residents call Bettendorf home.

With a residential growth rate above seven percent, contracting with The Davenport Group (TDG) for LAMA software will allow the city’s permitting, development, and inspections staff to meet the community’s needs much more easily. As a customized software solution, LAMA is uniquely flexible to adapt to existing governmental processes while facilitating streamlined operations as needed.

Aerial photo of the Quad Cities. Bettendorf lies on the northern bank of the Mississippi River (top).

“It’s clear that the employees at the City of Bettendorf are committed to their citizenry and believe in accountability,” noted TDG President Jerry Davenport. “The fact that our own company’s staff is highly responsive and accountable to our clients made this partnership an especially great fit.”

With a wide variety of modules, LAMA software comprehensively addresses municipal asset management needs. Bettendorf is now using LAMA to support their permitting, planning, licensing, and code compliance function. In addition to the public citizen portal and mobile app, LAMA allows the city to support both residents and businesses with TDG’s state-of-the-art, user-friendly software.

“LAMA is a robust software solution with a lot of modules, and it’s important that our developers understand the intricacies of municipal procedures and processes,” said Ben Davenport, lead developer of LAMA. “So there’s a steep learning curve for our new hires, but Adelynn has jumped into training with notable aptitude.”

As her training progresses, Adelynn’s responsibilities will increase to include working with new and existing clients to customize the software to their evolving needs.

“I really appreciate how supportive the team environment is at The Davenport Group,” Adelynn noted. “Everyone works together closely to respond quickly to the clients. Plus, the software is comprehensive but still streamlined, and I’m looking forward to helping to take it into the next stages of its development.”

In addition to her coding skills, Adelynn is fluent in Mandarin and French. In her free time she enjoys traveling, as well as spending time exploring the beautiful landscapes of Colorado.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/11/15/the-davenport-group-welcomes-adelynn-khoo/feed/0terrapretareviewCity of Salina adopts LAMAhttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/city-of-salina-adopts-lama/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/city-of-salina-adopts-lama/#respondSat, 21 Oct 2017 08:52:32 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=228The City of Salina, KS goes live with LAMA this week, bringing more convenience in their permitting processes to community members as well as city staff. The trade center of north central Kansas, Salina is home to approximately 50,000 people.

In addition to permitting, Salina has contracted with The Davenport Group (TDG) to provide software for planning, licensing, and code compliance. The solution includes both the LAMA Mobile App and the public web citizen portal. “We appreciate that this is a hard-working community that needs their city services to function smoothly and efficiently,” said Jerry Davenport, TDG president. “It’s a pleasure to work with the city’s employees to find ways the software can streamline their processes while adapting to the existing structure.”

The customization of LAMA to each client’s pre-existing procedures allows the software to be implemeted with minimal disruption to the city’s workflow, while its adaptability and forward-thinking design support innovation where possible and desirable.

Multiple colleges and universities are located in the city, which is situated in one of the world’s largest wheat-producing regions. Salina also offers a number of cultural attractions, including community theatres, art centers, and museums.

Grain silos in Salina, which is the trade center for one of the world’s largest wheat-producing agricultural areas.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/city-of-salina-adopts-lama/feed/0terrapretareviewPhoto by Aaron Headly, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.Harrisonburg, VA to launch improved GIShttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/04/02/harrisonburg-va-to-launch-improved-gis/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2017/04/02/harrisonburg-va-to-launch-improved-gis/#respondSun, 02 Apr 2017 20:36:17 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=205The Davenport Group (TDG) is proud to announce its partnership with the City of Harrisonburg, which is soon to benefit from the innovative and efficient services of the company’s custom GIS software.

Downtown Harrisonburg includes many buildings listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.

The City of Harrisonburg is home to nearly 55,000 residents. City staff’s commitment to providing easily accessible and user-friendly service to the citizens in their community is evidenced by their selection of The Davenport Group as the software provider for their Geographic Information Services.

With dozens of clients throughout the U.S. and Canada, The Davenport Group offers noteworthy improvements in governmental software, along with exceptional customer service and unmatched accountability. TDG understands that in this day and age, local government needs to customize its processes to meet the needs of its community; the company thus tailors its premiere software suite, Land Management (LAMA), to the specifications of each client.

“We’re very pleased to be able to work with the staff of Harrisonburg, who clearly care about making their processes as convenient as possible for their citizens,” said Ben Davenport, co-founder of TDG. “Through the process of implementing our software, we’re also able to support city staff in streamlining their procedures so that they gain efficiency without compromising the high quality of their services.” The City of Harrisonburg has implemented the LAMA permitting, code compliance, Mobile App, and public web citizen portal.

Centrally located in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, Harrisonburg is known as the home of James Madison University, and offers a variety of historical and cultural attractions. The natural beauty of the area makes it a popular destination for hikers and outdoor adventurers.

The LAMA software is on schedule for implementation in October 2017. For more information, contact TDG at (800) 640-0373.

“We’re very pleased to have Tricia join The Davenport Group,” said Jerry Davenport, president of TDG. “She’s a great fit for our company culture — she’s adaptable, she’s an adept problem-solver, and she really understands what our clients need to do their jobs as efficiently and easily as possible.”

Tricia joins TDG’s Colorado Springs office and will guide new clients through the customization and implementation processes, as well as providing ongoing support for existing clients.

Tricia’s also an internationally recorded singer-songwriter, and plays gigs throughout Colorado’s Front Range in her free time. She enjoys spending time with friends and family, including her dog Shiloh.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/12/15/welcome-to-our-newest-project-manager-patricia-parish/feed/0terrapretareviewAnkeny Launches LAMA for Building and Planninghttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/02/09/ankeny-launches-lama-for-building-and-planning/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/02/09/ankeny-launches-lama-for-building-and-planning/#respondMon, 09 Feb 2015 20:41:14 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=136Ankeny, Iowa has a population of about 50k and it is located just north of Des Moines and east of Saylorville lake. Ankeny makes up part of the Des Moines greater metropolitan area. The city was founded in 1875 and much of its infant growth can be attributed to the coal mining boom in Iowa in the early 20th century. Now, about a century later, Ankeny is once again growing rapidly. The city’s population has tripled since 1980 and the 2013 census affirmed that it was the fastest growing city in Iowa for the previous year. Dan Filger, the planning and zoning commissioner for the city, described this trend to the Des Moines Register, “If you look at our comprehensive plan, which goes out to 2035, we are planning on having a population of 90k.”

Naturally as Ankeny’s population has increased, so has its development. The number of new building permits issued in 2014 rose 27% from 2013 and the total property valuation increased 16%. To compensate for the increased demand for city services, Ankeny decided to upgrade their municipal software to LAMA Server, a comprehensive city management software suite from the Davenport Group. LAMA Server combines the latest ERP, GIS, web, and mobile technologies to solve major problems facing cities today. It was designed by a team with decades of city planning and GIS experience and the product line has been in development since 2005. As a result, LAMA Server was created to fit seamlessly with municipal processes and not the other way around. And if a legacy process happens to be extremely unique? No problem, LAMA Server has the flexibility to adapt to unique problems as well.

Ankeny officials expect the new software platform to significantly increase efficiency. LAMA Server’s Public Web module is one great example of this improvement. The Public Web module acts as an interface between the city and the general public. Citizens can apply and pay for services online, track their current projects, and any publicly available projects in their area. LAMA Server also contains workflow logic that can adjust reviews and requirements automatically, on the fly, depending on the outcome of previous events (e.g. a hearing or an inspection). Couple that with an automatic notification and messaging system and it’s impossible for an application to fall through the cracks. Also, with the LAMA mobile app, inspectors can schedule and process inspections onsite, in real time.

The software isn’t limited to improving efficiency either, it also helps to improve quality and accountability, major focuses of Ankeny. When the Des Moines Register interviewed Ankeny City Manager David Jones, he said that just because Ankeny is now among the 743 incorporated places in the United States with populations of 50,000 or larger, it won’t change the way the city goes about its carefully crafted business. According to David, “Numbers are great and growing is important, but it is all about quality growth,” Jones said. “Planned growth. Strategic growth. Our growth is appreciated in our community to varying degrees. I think our growing pains have been fairly standard. You have to stay on top of the infrastructure needs and you have to pay attention to traffic patterns. We know we are poised for what awaits us.” LAMA Server has several tools that allow municipalities to exceed their development goals and standards. Most importantly it is integrated with an Arc GIS mapping interface. Planners use the map interface to quickly evaluate projects in the context of their surrounding area and available GIS data. LAMA Server is also integrated with Blue Beam for completing comprehensive plan reviews. And finally, the program contains a robust reporting service that allows officials to maintain a higher level perspective of their path and trajectory.

Ankeny’s remarkable growth has increased the responsibility of the government maintain their development plan despite the increased workload. Communication Officer Deb Dyer told Iowa Living Magazine, “We did a citizen survey, and the results showed that 94 percent of respondents thought Ankeny was a great place to live, work and raise their families and felt a real sense of community, which is significant when a large portion of the population hasn’t lived here that long.” By upgrading their software to LAMA Server, Ankeny officials are reassured that they have the tools to manage their city’s growth and maintain the Ankeny’s unique community.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/02/09/ankeny-launches-lama-for-building-and-planning/feed/0ajplumlee33Campbell County Goes Live with LAMAhttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/01/26/campbell-county-goes-live-with-lama/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/01/26/campbell-county-goes-live-with-lama/#respondMon, 26 Jan 2015 19:38:13 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=109On January 26, 2015 Campbell County, located in the northeast corner of Wyoming, became the latest municipality to join the LAMA fold. With the implementation of LAMA to manage their permitting, planning and code enforcement responsibilities, the County now has a state-of-the-art solution that will grow with them as they experience expansive growth related to the energy industry. The implementation of LAMA’s Mobility Module is key to the County’s ability to efficiently manage their departmental resources as the demand on those resources continues to grow. The flexibility inherent in LAMA allowed The Davenport Group to configure the LAMA software to mimic the County’s existing workflow, including the look and feel of their current forms and reports. That same flexibility in configuration allows the LAMA software to adapt with the County as it grows into the 21st century.

With a population approaching 50,000 Campbell County has two incorporated communities within its boundaries. The City of Gillette is the county seat and has often been referred to as the Energy Capital of the Nation. With 12 active coal mines in the County supplying more coal for electricity generation than any other county in the nation, we can understand where its nickname comes from. The Town of Wright is the other incorporated community in Campbell County. Wright has been a planned community from its beginnings in the late 70’s. Even before The Atlantic Richfield Company or ARCO opened the Black Thunder Coal Mine, the company had been studying city planning issues with the goal of providing a place to live for the influx of workers it expected when the mine opened. Thus, the community of Wright was born. Wright gains its name from the landowner who sold the land to ARCO so they could create the planned community that they had envisioned. Wright was incorporated as the Town of Wright in 1985.

A strong growth rate since the decade of the 70s has presented Campbell County with unique challenges. Stepping up to meet the challenges of life is nothing new to the folks that live here. With the decision to implement LAMA from The Davenport Group, the County has positioned themselves to not only be able to meet these challenges but to master them well into the coming decades.

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2015/01/26/campbell-county-goes-live-with-lama/feed/0campbell county logodavenport1Web-based and HTTP Solutionshttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/web-based-and-http-solutions/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/web-based-and-http-solutions/#respondMon, 01 Dec 2014 20:25:22 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=79I constantly hear software requirements dictating a web-based application for enterprise public sector applications. However, I seldom know whether they are demanding the application run in a browser, which is the standard interpretation of web-based application, or whether they are referring to the data transfer protocol that typically binds business applications indirectly to their databases. I think it is worth exploring the technologies available with HTTP applications since the traditional definition of web-based applications dealing with HTML, CSS, Javascript, etc., are become somewhat blurred with XML markup technologies, such as XBAP and technologies that offer many of the traditional web-based benefits, such as APP-V and RemoteApp.

I worked on the development of all types of applications, including browser-based, desktop, and mobile applications. Lately, the backbone of all these are typically web services layers, ReST and SOAP, and for the most part run over HTTP with TLS. SOAP is essentially an XML-RPC, and as such, is not constrained to HTTP. My usual response to “I need a Web App” is “Okay, why exactly?” I typically get roughly the same five responses, and usually just the first three:

accessible anywhere

single point of maintenance

no installations

flexible hosting options

platform agnostic (hardware and software)

While these are logical and intelligent requirements, they are in no way confined to a browser, except maybe the last and even that is changing. In addressing requirement (1), one can build a desktop, mobile, or hybrid application (like XBAP) that runs over HTTP (which is synonymous with accessible anywhere because firewalls don’t tend to block port 80). Click-once and other attendant-free installations take care of (2) and (3), not to mention server-based deployments, such as Microsoft’s APP-V or RemoteApp. I would even argue that enterprise business web applications which are publicly exposed require more maintenance, if only from a security standpoint. The fact that requirement (1) is met practically implies (4) is met also. And that leaves (5). While IT systems professional are certainly excited about iOS and Android technology, how many are exited about having to support and maintain them in the scope of their network and systems security operations? I’ve talked with many and most are apprehensive and guarded, at best. With Windows 8 (and soon to be 10) providing a nice mobile OS on top of some excellent hardware choices, mobile options for Windows-based systems administrators wanting integrated domain-based security while in the office is getting easier. Not to mention there are nice free RDP solutions in both the Android and Apple app stores.

Other considerations that I deem important for governments, but which do not receive much attention are:

secure data

ownership and physical possession of data

natural disasters, loss of internet, and disaster recovery

Now the third point cuts both ways. Obviously, if a disaster strikes your data center you have problems, but that is true of any data center. Offsite backup is always a good idea and you can bet hosting providers do it. My main point is that our local area networks are more reliable than our bandwidth and connection from our ISP (for most us IT folks). A couple other items I think are worth considering is application performance, speed, and integration with other resources on your network, such as Active Directory, file shares, and other 3rd party systems local governments inevitably need to integrate. But to be fair, most system integrations today leverage web services.

It is not that i do not see a need for web-based applications, but that i see more applications pivoting toward web services. Whether or not it loads in a browser is more of a platform agnostic requirement than an accessibility requirement. If you want more information on our product line, including our web-based products, please visit our website.

What are your reasons for a web-based application requirement?

]]>https://davengis.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/web-based-and-http-solutions/feed/0mapmavenLAMA Android App Releasehttps://davengis.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/lama-android-app-release/
https://davengis.wordpress.com/2014/10/13/lama-android-app-release/#respondMon, 13 Oct 2014 13:59:59 +0000http://davengis.wordpress.com/?p=112The Davenport Group released the first version of its ‘LAMA Mobile’ Android app in 2014. The new app marks a significant addition to the LAMA Software Suite and offers clients many new features and benefits. The Android app is the Davenport Group’s first app built for mobile devices but it is not actually the company’s first mobile app. The main product, ‘LAMA Server’, features a mobile mode so it can be run on laptops out in the field and then synchronized later with the server when the user returns to the office. While this solution provides the mobile user with the full power of the desktop program, the Davenport Group wanted to build a simpler version of the program designed especially for inspectors. The Android framework is the perfect foundation for the app because it is easy to maintain, available on the widest array of mobile devices, and it integrates the latest mobile technologies.

Since ‘LAMA Mobile’ was built for inspectors, the app’s design revolves around scheduling and completing inspections in an efficient, intuitive way. Inspectors can schedule and manage their inspections on a calendar. Then as they complete individual inspections, they can sift through preset checklist items (Sections of code commonly cited for the respective inspection type), add custom items (Voice recognition or keyboard input), search the code database, and take pictures to upload with the inspection. Once the inspection is complete, users can email or print an inspection report and manually upload the completed data. Cellphone network dead zones aren’t a problem since the app stores all edits locally. Users can complete inspections without service and then upload edited data when their cell coverage returns or when they access a WiFi signal. The app even includes an automatic sync setting that will automatically download newly scheduled inspections and upload edited data nightly.

While completing inspections is the main function of the app, it can also be used to access many other forms of data. When an inspection is downloaded, its respective permit, code incident, or project is downloaded with it. There inspectors can access contact information and with one click they can email or call the property owner, contractor, etc. They can also access any documents and property information associated to the record. Furthermore, the app includes a search feature so users can search for any record in the system on the fly. For example, if inspectors see active work that they weren’t aware of when they are out in the field, they can search for their current location and find out if the work is permitted. The app’s icing on the cake is its map interface for locational data. It leverages Google’s Navigation API to create an optimal route between inspections for a given day. The route is then displayed on a Google Map view with directions between each waypoint. Inspectors can also use the map to view or download data that is located within the current extent of the map.

And because it is an Android application, ‘LAMA Mobile’ is incredibly easy to implement. The client initially distributes one installation file and the app will automatically update itself when new versions are available. The app provides options for working with hardware budget restrictions as well. Android supports a wide range of affordable devices and ‘LAMA Mobile’ was built so that users can share devices. Each user logs-in using their main LAMA account and the app will save/schedule data relative to the active user.

The City of New Orleans is one of the Davenport Group’s first clients to start using the Android app. Jennifer Cecil is the director of the New Orleans ‘One Stop for Permits & Licenses’ department and she lead the implementation. Here is her review of the app:

“The LAMA App allows my inspectors create smart routes for inspections, view violations and permits in their area through an interactive map, and create new violation cases in the field. The disconnected mode option allows inspections to be entered even when we are outside of cellular networks. Because of adjustable text size and easy to use pass/fail buttons, I no longer have pay for maintenance and cellular services on Toughbooks or tablets. We’ve also been able to eliminate cameras – our inspectors are able to take photos on their phones from within the app. If their supervisor needs to see it, inspectors can sync right away and the information and pictures will be available in the office instantly. Because we scan all plans and applications at the office, it’s easy for my inspectors to resolve any disputes about scope of work while in the field by accessing documents through the App.”

‘LAMA Mobile’ for Android is just the beginning of the Davenport Group’s expansion to mobile technologies. Plans are underway to release versions of the app for the iPhone & Windows Mobile frameworks as well. These new apps demonstrate the company’s commitment to incorporate new technologies and provide the best value to its customers.